chicken

I don’t have a “signature” dish, per se. I like to play, I like to make new discoveries. But I do have a few standby dishes that I know and love. Penne pesto with chicken breast is one of them. Trouble in River City: I wanted to make the dish, but someone I was cooking for has a pine nut allergy. Pine nuts are an integral component of my pesto. Oh boy. It was time to experiment.

Sometimes you have to change a dish a little bit. Perhaps someone you’re cooking for is a bit finicky, or, as in this case, they have a food allergy. This can freak out people with limited experience in the kitchen. People with a lot of experience might scoff at the idea of messing with what they know is the “right” way. This is stupid. A good cook shouldn’t be snotty about his or her recipes. Look at it as a chance to experiment. Change the flavor profile a little bit. That’s why I did with this. Goodbye pine nuts, hello walnuts.

I was craving fried chicken yesterday. What I ended up eating was something that wasn’t quite what I was craving but was nearly as satisfying. Perhaps even more satisfying, if you add creativity bonus points. Alright, perhaps not. There isn’t any kind of “fried” chicken that satisfies like a piece of skin-on chicken that has taken a delicious bath in bubbling oil. Still, this was pretty damn good.

What did I do? In a sense I deconstructed fried chicken. Deconstructing things is fun, but fun isn’t why this happened. Now I didn’t set out to be a clever beaver or anything. So why did I do it? I’ll give you two choices, and you can decide which one is true.

One: I set out to construct a lower calorie “fried” chicken that is just as enjoyable as its deep fried cousin. We all hate calories, right? And deep frying is ever so evil and wicked and full of death. “Fried” chicken should be baked chicken, because that’s what’s good for our souls and our waistlines. And oven baked chicken tastes better, right? Oh yes. So much better, all dried out and sad. So I deconstructed in hope that it might taste better. Perhaps the chicken wouldn’t be so dry.

Two: I was craving fried chicken but had cleaned my deep fryer the other day and hadn’t procured new oil.

Toss mix in a medium-hot pan for 2 minutes, and then add:3 Tablespoons Parmesan Cheese

Stir until mix is golden brown. This should take about another 2 minutes. Keep a close watch- it can go from beautiful to burned quickly.
Remove breading from pan, and allow to cool for a few minutes.
Cut cooked chicken into cubes.
Put in a bowl or plastic bag, add breading, shake or toss to cover.
Serve.

* Make sure the macadamia nuts are raw. Pulse whole nuts in food processor or spice grinder until roughly the same size at the panko.

** You don’t have to limit yourself to pine nuts. Try any combination you like. I just happened to have extra pine nuts on hand. Raw walnuts or almonds would be nice, too. Make sure to process them to the same size as the panko.

*** If preparing this dish within 20 miles of a southerner, rename dish. Don’t even try to pretend it’s fried chicken. They will be angry. Call it Nutty Yankee Chicken Bake, or something like that.

One of my supersmart classmates told me about a post on the NY Times website featuring quinoa. Well, quinoa happens to be one of my favorite new foods, and it should be one of yours, too.

Quinoa is often referred to as a grain, but it’s actually the seed of a South American plant related to the beet. Quinoa is a complete protein, meaning it contains a full set of essential amino acids. It’s also a solid source of phosphorus, magnesium, iron, and B vitamins. Most importantly, the flavor is fantastic. Win on all levels.

Preparation is simple: Rinse thoroughly. Use a 1 to 2.5 ratio of quinoa to liquid. I like vegetable stock, but water will work, too. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 15 minutes. Done.

Saute for 5 minutes, and remove from pan.
Cook chicken in same pan for about 3 minutes, or until done.
Return vegetables to pan, and add the sauce you prepared earlier.
Cook 3-4 more minutes.
Finish with a squeeze of lemon.

Serve over cooked quinoa.I’d say a half cup of cooked quinoa per person is a good serving size.

Sweet sweet love affair with the Big Green Egg continues. I smoked a brisket the other day. Happiness. There is a strong possibility of ribs or perhaps a pork shoulder this weekend. Jealous? You might be. Come to Pittsburgh, I’ll share the love. In the meantime, here’s a chicken dish I invented that you can do on your grills, too.

A simple yogurt slather will do wonders for your grilled chicken. Yogurt’s combination of mild acidity and calcium work to tenderize the meat. You’ll be able to mix a lot of flavor in, too. Serve the chicken as is, or add it to a salad or flavorful curry.

The mix below is what I used. It was lovely. But feel free to choose your own adventure. Let me know what you come up with!

This recipe seems a lot more complicated than it is. Take it step by step, and you’ll be enjoying home cooked curry in no time!

For the Chicken:

Grill 2 Chicken Breasts for 6 minutes per side. An optional step is to coat the chicken with a yogurt mix, let it sit in the fridge for a few hours, and then grill. After chicken cools, cut it into medium sized chunks.

*There are many curry powders out there. If possible, try to find an Indian market. They will have a much wider variety to choose from, and you can ask the staff to pick their favorites. If there are no markets locally, you should have no trouble finding a curry powder at your local grocery. Be sure to taste the powder before you add it- some are quite hot, so adjust your chili powder accordingly.

Like this:

I’m getting my garden ready for the summer season, and there is some cleaning up to do. My thyme plant has grown steadily throughout the winter, and I’ve been clipping little bits here and there. But the thyme is starting to flower, and it’s going to have to make way for a tomato plant soon. Most will be hung for drying, but some of it went into this easy weeknight meal.

Cut into chunks, season with salt, and then brown over high heat:Two Chicken Breasts